The Lottery Rose
Author: Irene Hunt
Characters Georgie Burgess, Rosebush, Robin, Sister Mary Angela, Grandfather, Mrs. Harper, Ms. Ames, Ms. Sims, Timothy, Georgie’s Mom, Steve, Ms. Cressman
Abused by his alcoholic mother and her boyfriend, seven-year-old Georgie Burgess learns to hide his hurt deep inside of him and instead, withdraws into a safe and secret world of beautiful gardens filled with roses--just like those in the library book he treasures. When Georgie wins a small rosebush in a grocery store lottery, he gives his new friend all the love and caring he's never had. Georgie's life begins to improve when the courts rescue the love-starved child from his desperate situation and sends Georgie away to a home for boys, where he will be safe and properly cared for. Slowly, and not without pain, Georgie learns to give--and to receive--love.
Flowers play a strong, symbolic role in this story, and for Georgie Burgess, flowers symbolize for him, a place that is safe and beautiful and happy in a world that is decidedly the opposite.
The first illustration of how flowers comfort Georgie comes in the form of the book of flowers that Georgie borrows from his school librarian, Mrs. Ames. Although Georgie is treated cruelly by his teacher, Ms. Cressman, and feels lonely and humiliated in front of the other children he finds solace by looking at the beautiful flowers in his book and going deep within the beautiful pages, to a place that was just for him; a place where he would be far away from his teacher’s cruel words…from Steve’s cruel belt, inflicting the painful marks on Georgie’s body…and especially from his mother’s neglect and her addiction to alcohol and her toxic relationship with Steve. While his mother promises Georgie, in her rare moments of sobriety, that she will protect him from Steve and that Georgie’s life will get better, her promises are as empty as her whiskey bottle, and she chooses Steve and his money over her neglected son. The only person to show Georgie any sincere compassion is his librarian, Mrs. Ames, who allows Georgie to keep his precious flower book, despite the school’s rule that he can only borrow the book for 2 weeks. She recognizes the comfort that this book gives to this lonely and neglected child, and she not only allows Georgie to keep his favorite book…she occasionally sits next to him and helps him read the book.
Ms. Sims, the checkout clerk at the grocery store, is the only other person in Georgie’s life to show him a smidgen of kindness. When Georgie was at the store, purchasing a can of baked beans for his supper, Ms. Sims gave Georgie a precious gift…a cardboard lottery ticket with special numbers on it; numbers that Georgie found to be most precious because they gave him something to hope for in his otherwise hopeless, young life. Although Ms. Sims planned to surprise Georgie with a candy bar, to comfort the boy if he didn’t win anything, Georgie’s prize, when he won it, was much more precious to him than a mere chocolate bar. With his magic lottery numbers, Georgie had won a beautiful rosebush – Georgie’s most favorite flower from his special book – that promised beautiful, scarlet red roses when it bloomed. Mrs. Sims is also the one who becomes Georgie’s temporary foster mom after Georgie is rescued from his traumatic situation. She kindly provides Georgie a safe place to live and be with his rosebush.
When Georgie comes to, after being mercilessly attacked by Steve, his first concern is not for the agonizing pain from his injuries or the whereabouts of his mother and Steve, or if Steve was still lurking somewhere, waiting to hurt Georgie again, or why there were so many strangers in his house…it was for his beloved rosebush. When Georgie learns that the janitor threw his prize away, with the rest of the trash, Georgie is clearly upset when he learns that his precious rosebush might be lost forever, and when the kind policeman finds Georgie’s prize, Georgie he hugs his precious rosebush tightly, despite the pain he was suffering from the sharp thorns and the injuries he sustained when Steve attacked him. Georgie’s tears are a testament to the love he has for his rosebush. He didn’t cry once when the kind nurse was tending his wounds, despite the agonizing pain he was in, and he didn’t cry when he learned that his mother and Steve were gone. His tears only came when he was worried about, and then reunited with, his lost friend, the rosebush…and even when he was in the hospital, recovering from his injuries, his comfort came in holding the rosebush, as he slept and having a beautiful dream that he is in a safe and beautiful garden, far away from the monsters who were cruel to him.
Georgie finds another friend in the kindhearted nun, Sister Mary Angela, that Mrs. Sim entrusts to take care of Georgie. Mrs. Sims accompanies Georgie to the school for boys to ensure that Georgie will be safe and well cared for, and Sister Mary Angela shows kindness to Georgie, especially, when she offers to give Georgie a place in the school garden to plant his beloved rosebush.
While Georgie wishes to plant his rosebush in Mrs. Harper’s garden because her garden reminds Georgie of the gardens in his precious flower book, I think there is a deeper symbolism in this garden. Sister tells Georgie that Mrs. Harper and her husband had restored this beautiful garden after it had been neglected for a long time, and since Mrs. Harper’s husband had passed away, this garden remains as a memorial in her husband’s honor. For Georgie, this was the only garden worthy of having his rosebush planted in it, and the thought of his rosebush being neglected and unloved makes Georgie’s heart ache. His love for his rosebush friend is what compels Georgie to steal over to the garden, even though the grownups had all rejected Georgie’s plea to have the rose planted there and plant the rosebush therein. While initially, Mrs. Harpers threatens to destroy Georgie’s precious rosebush, because he accidentally destroyed the flowers in her special garden, when Mrs. Harper learns the truth of Georgie’s history, she allows his rosebush to be planted in her garden…and it is only when Georgie sees his rose safe in her garden that he is finally able to rest and feel safe too.
Georgie finds a rare moment of perfect happiness when Mrs. Harper’s little son, Robin, and his grandfather, Mr. Collier, come to visit Georgie. They tell Georgie that his friend, the rose, is doing very well, in her new home, and the grandfather reads a special story to the children. As Georgie listens, he finds himself being so drawn into the story, that he wraps an arm around little Robin and even asks to keep the book when his new friends leave, so that he can read it again and look at the pictures. Georgie wants to learn to read, so he can share the stories with Robin and his rosebush. The Grandfather tells Georgie that his rose is a very sensitive flower, and much like Georgie, his friend, the rose, will also be happy to see Georgie when he and Sister visit the rose.
We also see the grandfather give Georgie a very precious gift; one that, up until this point, Georgie had only felt with the rosebush and his precious flower book. That gift was the feeling of hope that Georgie felt when he realized that he was able to read the book and the little story that this kind man wrote about Georgie and his friend, the rosebush.
In a sense, Georgie’s journey is mirrored by the rosebush’s journey. When we first meet Georgie, his only trusted friend is his rosebush. The conflict between Georgie and Mrs. Harper is sparked by Georgie’s fear that Mrs. Harper would carry out her threat to destroy his precious rosebush. Her desire to hurt his only friend is what causes Georgie’s deeply rooted hatred of Mrs. Harper, but I notice, much like the rosebush who, as time passed, was transformed from a shabby and neglected bunch of sticks into a rosebush that grew beautiful, scarlet blooms, Georgie also transforms from a scared and lonely child who has spent the first 7 years of his short life feeling neglected and unloved and abused, to a boy who is well-groomed and eager to learn…but it is the transformation of Georgie’s heart that is truly reflected.
One way that this is illustrated is in Georgie’s friendship with Mrs. Harper’s young son, Robin. In a sense, Georgie adopts Robin as his little brother and spends time with the child, teaching Robin to read and taking the child to feed the ducks at the lake. Another way that Georgie’s heart is reflected is in how he treats Mrs. Harper. While he initially sees her as an enemy to be feared and hated, after a time, Georgie’s heart softens toward Mrs. Harper. He secretly hopes that she will enjoy the children singing in the choir…and hopes that she sees that Georgie’s voice is helping to make the songs so beautiful. He recognizes that she put aside her grief and came to see the children sing and she thanks them for allowing her to hear them…for their singing reminded Mrs. Harper of her own son who loved to sing.
When Sister Mary Angela tells the boys that there is to be a drama class available for the boys at the school, Georgie initially refuses to participate in the play that the children will be performing in, because it is Mrs. Harper and not Sister, who will be teaching the boys. Still, Georgie memorized every character in every skit, and when he learns that the Mad Tea Party skit is to be taken from the program, Georgie feels sincere pity for Mrs. Harper, because he knows how much this particular skit…one that reminds her of her son who had performed the same skit…and this is what compels Georgie to put aside his hatred of Mrs. Harper. He becomes the Mad Hatter, opposite Mrs. Harper, who plays Alice, so that Mrs. Harper could have that moment of remembering her beloved son. Georgie’s love is shown for Mrs. Harper again when he – along with the other students – perform the song “The Prayer” at little Robin’s funeral. Although Georgie is initially so overcome with grief that he tells Sister he can’t sing, he finds the courage to give Mrs. Harper this precious gift to honor Robin.
Georgie’s ultimate act of love, for both Robin and Mrs. Harper, is shown when he chooses to give his beloved rosebush to Robin, after Robin tragically dies. He takes his rose from the beautiful garden, where he had fought so hard for it to be, and he plants the rose on Robin’s grave. His heart ached at the thought of losing his dearest friend, but he couldn’t bear for Robin to be alone in that cold, dark cemetery. And unlike the start of Georgie’s journey, when his only friend was his precious rosebush, Georgie can now give this rose to little Robin because he has a family who loves him, and cares for him, and he is no longer alone. This moment is made even more precious when Mrs. Harper finds Georgie in the cemetery and helped him plant this beautiful gift on her son’s grave and she brings Georgie home again.
© 2023 Keriane Kellogg. All rights reserved.
Author: Irene Hunt
Characters Georgie Burgess, Rosebush, Robin, Sister Mary Angela, Grandfather, Mrs. Harper, Ms. Ames, Ms. Sims, Timothy, Georgie’s Mom, Steve, Ms. Cressman
Abused by his alcoholic mother and her boyfriend, seven-year-old Georgie Burgess learns to hide his hurt deep inside of him and instead, withdraws into a safe and secret world of beautiful gardens filled with roses--just like those in the library book he treasures. When Georgie wins a small rosebush in a grocery store lottery, he gives his new friend all the love and caring he's never had. Georgie's life begins to improve when the courts rescue the love-starved child from his desperate situation and sends Georgie away to a home for boys, where he will be safe and properly cared for. Slowly, and not without pain, Georgie learns to give--and to receive--love.
Flowers play a strong, symbolic role in this story, and for Georgie Burgess, flowers symbolize for him, a place that is safe and beautiful and happy in a world that is decidedly the opposite.
The first illustration of how flowers comfort Georgie comes in the form of the book of flowers that Georgie borrows from his school librarian, Mrs. Ames. Although Georgie is treated cruelly by his teacher, Ms. Cressman, and feels lonely and humiliated in front of the other children he finds solace by looking at the beautiful flowers in his book and going deep within the beautiful pages, to a place that was just for him; a place where he would be far away from his teacher’s cruel words…from Steve’s cruel belt, inflicting the painful marks on Georgie’s body…and especially from his mother’s neglect and her addiction to alcohol and her toxic relationship with Steve. While his mother promises Georgie, in her rare moments of sobriety, that she will protect him from Steve and that Georgie’s life will get better, her promises are as empty as her whiskey bottle, and she chooses Steve and his money over her neglected son. The only person to show Georgie any sincere compassion is his librarian, Mrs. Ames, who allows Georgie to keep his precious flower book, despite the school’s rule that he can only borrow the book for 2 weeks. She recognizes the comfort that this book gives to this lonely and neglected child, and she not only allows Georgie to keep his favorite book…she occasionally sits next to him and helps him read the book.
Ms. Sims, the checkout clerk at the grocery store, is the only other person in Georgie’s life to show him a smidgen of kindness. When Georgie was at the store, purchasing a can of baked beans for his supper, Ms. Sims gave Georgie a precious gift…a cardboard lottery ticket with special numbers on it; numbers that Georgie found to be most precious because they gave him something to hope for in his otherwise hopeless, young life. Although Ms. Sims planned to surprise Georgie with a candy bar, to comfort the boy if he didn’t win anything, Georgie’s prize, when he won it, was much more precious to him than a mere chocolate bar. With his magic lottery numbers, Georgie had won a beautiful rosebush – Georgie’s most favorite flower from his special book – that promised beautiful, scarlet red roses when it bloomed. Mrs. Sims is also the one who becomes Georgie’s temporary foster mom after Georgie is rescued from his traumatic situation. She kindly provides Georgie a safe place to live and be with his rosebush.
When Georgie comes to, after being mercilessly attacked by Steve, his first concern is not for the agonizing pain from his injuries or the whereabouts of his mother and Steve, or if Steve was still lurking somewhere, waiting to hurt Georgie again, or why there were so many strangers in his house…it was for his beloved rosebush. When Georgie learns that the janitor threw his prize away, with the rest of the trash, Georgie is clearly upset when he learns that his precious rosebush might be lost forever, and when the kind policeman finds Georgie’s prize, Georgie he hugs his precious rosebush tightly, despite the pain he was suffering from the sharp thorns and the injuries he sustained when Steve attacked him. Georgie’s tears are a testament to the love he has for his rosebush. He didn’t cry once when the kind nurse was tending his wounds, despite the agonizing pain he was in, and he didn’t cry when he learned that his mother and Steve were gone. His tears only came when he was worried about, and then reunited with, his lost friend, the rosebush…and even when he was in the hospital, recovering from his injuries, his comfort came in holding the rosebush, as he slept and having a beautiful dream that he is in a safe and beautiful garden, far away from the monsters who were cruel to him.
Georgie finds another friend in the kindhearted nun, Sister Mary Angela, that Mrs. Sim entrusts to take care of Georgie. Mrs. Sims accompanies Georgie to the school for boys to ensure that Georgie will be safe and well cared for, and Sister Mary Angela shows kindness to Georgie, especially, when she offers to give Georgie a place in the school garden to plant his beloved rosebush.
While Georgie wishes to plant his rosebush in Mrs. Harper’s garden because her garden reminds Georgie of the gardens in his precious flower book, I think there is a deeper symbolism in this garden. Sister tells Georgie that Mrs. Harper and her husband had restored this beautiful garden after it had been neglected for a long time, and since Mrs. Harper’s husband had passed away, this garden remains as a memorial in her husband’s honor. For Georgie, this was the only garden worthy of having his rosebush planted in it, and the thought of his rosebush being neglected and unloved makes Georgie’s heart ache. His love for his rosebush friend is what compels Georgie to steal over to the garden, even though the grownups had all rejected Georgie’s plea to have the rose planted there and plant the rosebush therein. While initially, Mrs. Harpers threatens to destroy Georgie’s precious rosebush, because he accidentally destroyed the flowers in her special garden, when Mrs. Harper learns the truth of Georgie’s history, she allows his rosebush to be planted in her garden…and it is only when Georgie sees his rose safe in her garden that he is finally able to rest and feel safe too.
Georgie finds a rare moment of perfect happiness when Mrs. Harper’s little son, Robin, and his grandfather, Mr. Collier, come to visit Georgie. They tell Georgie that his friend, the rose, is doing very well, in her new home, and the grandfather reads a special story to the children. As Georgie listens, he finds himself being so drawn into the story, that he wraps an arm around little Robin and even asks to keep the book when his new friends leave, so that he can read it again and look at the pictures. Georgie wants to learn to read, so he can share the stories with Robin and his rosebush. The Grandfather tells Georgie that his rose is a very sensitive flower, and much like Georgie, his friend, the rose, will also be happy to see Georgie when he and Sister visit the rose.
We also see the grandfather give Georgie a very precious gift; one that, up until this point, Georgie had only felt with the rosebush and his precious flower book. That gift was the feeling of hope that Georgie felt when he realized that he was able to read the book and the little story that this kind man wrote about Georgie and his friend, the rosebush.
In a sense, Georgie’s journey is mirrored by the rosebush’s journey. When we first meet Georgie, his only trusted friend is his rosebush. The conflict between Georgie and Mrs. Harper is sparked by Georgie’s fear that Mrs. Harper would carry out her threat to destroy his precious rosebush. Her desire to hurt his only friend is what causes Georgie’s deeply rooted hatred of Mrs. Harper, but I notice, much like the rosebush who, as time passed, was transformed from a shabby and neglected bunch of sticks into a rosebush that grew beautiful, scarlet blooms, Georgie also transforms from a scared and lonely child who has spent the first 7 years of his short life feeling neglected and unloved and abused, to a boy who is well-groomed and eager to learn…but it is the transformation of Georgie’s heart that is truly reflected.
One way that this is illustrated is in Georgie’s friendship with Mrs. Harper’s young son, Robin. In a sense, Georgie adopts Robin as his little brother and spends time with the child, teaching Robin to read and taking the child to feed the ducks at the lake. Another way that Georgie’s heart is reflected is in how he treats Mrs. Harper. While he initially sees her as an enemy to be feared and hated, after a time, Georgie’s heart softens toward Mrs. Harper. He secretly hopes that she will enjoy the children singing in the choir…and hopes that she sees that Georgie’s voice is helping to make the songs so beautiful. He recognizes that she put aside her grief and came to see the children sing and she thanks them for allowing her to hear them…for their singing reminded Mrs. Harper of her own son who loved to sing.
When Sister Mary Angela tells the boys that there is to be a drama class available for the boys at the school, Georgie initially refuses to participate in the play that the children will be performing in, because it is Mrs. Harper and not Sister, who will be teaching the boys. Still, Georgie memorized every character in every skit, and when he learns that the Mad Tea Party skit is to be taken from the program, Georgie feels sincere pity for Mrs. Harper, because he knows how much this particular skit…one that reminds her of her son who had performed the same skit…and this is what compels Georgie to put aside his hatred of Mrs. Harper. He becomes the Mad Hatter, opposite Mrs. Harper, who plays Alice, so that Mrs. Harper could have that moment of remembering her beloved son. Georgie’s love is shown for Mrs. Harper again when he – along with the other students – perform the song “The Prayer” at little Robin’s funeral. Although Georgie is initially so overcome with grief that he tells Sister he can’t sing, he finds the courage to give Mrs. Harper this precious gift to honor Robin.
Georgie’s ultimate act of love, for both Robin and Mrs. Harper, is shown when he chooses to give his beloved rosebush to Robin, after Robin tragically dies. He takes his rose from the beautiful garden, where he had fought so hard for it to be, and he plants the rose on Robin’s grave. His heart ached at the thought of losing his dearest friend, but he couldn’t bear for Robin to be alone in that cold, dark cemetery. And unlike the start of Georgie’s journey, when his only friend was his precious rosebush, Georgie can now give this rose to little Robin because he has a family who loves him, and cares for him, and he is no longer alone. This moment is made even more precious when Mrs. Harper finds Georgie in the cemetery and helped him plant this beautiful gift on her son’s grave and she brings Georgie home again.
© 2023 Keriane Kellogg. All rights reserved.